Jackets Picked Fourth in HCAC Preseason Poll

GREENWOOD, Ind. – The Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference released its 2008 preseason football coaches poll on Tuesday. Defiance was selected to finish fourth in the eight-team league and placed eight players on the HCAC Watch List.

Defiance garnered 35 votes in the poll, while finishing behind Franklin (61), Mount St. Joseph (58) and Rose-Hulman (46). Anderson (31) and Manchester (27) rounded out what figures to be a competitive top six, while Hanover (18) and Bluffton (12) were tabbed in seventh and eighth.

Along with being picked fourth, DC placed eight players on the 59-man HCAC Watch List for the upcoming season. Lewis Caralla (Sr./RB/Tampa, FL) and Nick Nicol (Jr./OL/Temperance, MI) were the lone two offensive players selected, while Chuck Bowman (Jr./LB/Monroe, MI), Travis Guisinger (Jr./SS/Lima, OH), Austin Hedderly (So./DL/Dublin, OH), Dan Orta (Sr./DL/Defiance, OH), Keith Snyder (Sr./FS/Martin, MI) and Dustin Supan (Jr./CB/Medina, OH) were named from the defensive unit.

The Yellow Jackets ended the 2007 campaign with a 5-5 overall record and were third in the HCAC with a 4-3 mark. The five wins during 2007 gave DC 18 wins over its past three seasons, marking its best three-year span since posting 19 victories from 1999-2001.

In order to improve on its 2007 season, the Purple and Gold will need to replace the offensive void left by Luke Dillon. The D3football.com All-American and HCAC Co-Offensive MVP racked up 93 receptions for 1,241 yards and 14 touchdowns from his wide receiver position and accounted for over half of DC's touchdowns.

Defiance will be well equipped for that challenge and will turn to an experienced offensive line led by Nicol to anchor its offensive attack in 2008. Caralla will be the primary beneficiary of that offensive line and will see the majority of the carries in the upcoming season. Caralla had an immediate impact in his first season with the Jackets, earning First Team All-HCAC honors after rushing for 793 yards and six touchdowns. The Tampa, Fla., native excelled in HCAC action, banging out a league-leading 113.5 yards a game and netting 7.5 yards a pop.

The Yellow Jacket defense is set to return seven starters and should improve over the unit from last season which ranked second in the HCAC and yielded only 20.6 points and 316.4 yards per contest. DC will be tough in the trenches once again, as it will be led by Orta, Hedderly and Joemese Scott. Bowman will lead the linebacker corps and HCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year candidate, Snyder, will be joined by fellow returning starters Guisinger and Supan to highlight a hard-hitting secondary.

Defiance will open its 2008 season on September 6 at Muskingum. The game is set to begin at 7:30 pm.